Workers protest in Kansas City for higher minimum wage

November 29, 2016 at 4:10 p.m. | Updated January 26, 2017 at 1:15 p.m.

by Associated Press

Protesters march around the McDonald's restaurant in the 3200 block of Main Street, early Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016, in Kansas City, Mo., as part of a national day of protest organized by Fight for $15 and United We Stand movements, seeking higher hourly wages, including for workers at fast-food restaurants and airports. (John Sleezer/The Kansas City Star via AP)
Protesters march around the McDonald's restaurant in the 3200 block of Main Street, early Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016, in Kansas City, Mo., as part of a national day of protest organized by Fight for $15 and United We Stand movements, seeking higher hourly wages, including for workers at fast-food restaurants and airports. (John Sleezer/The Kansas City Star via AP)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Striking workers are protesting in Kansas City for a higher minimum wage as part of rallies nationwide.

The Kansas City Star (http://bit.ly/2gt0RXq ) reports that dozens marched around a McDonald's restaurant shortly before 6 a.m. Tuesday before heading to a Burger King restaurant.

The rally participants included the Rev. Donna Simon, of St. Mark Hope and Peace. She says that no one can live on $15,000 a year.

The rallies in Kansas City and elsewhere commemorate the day four years ago that the Fight for $15 movement began in New York City when a group of fast-food workers walked off the job.

The national minimum wage rate is $7.25 an hour, where it has been since 2009. Some states have passed higher minimums; Missouri's rises to $7.70 an hour in January.